KUDOS to KATHY & LARRY ... at Thornton's Whitewater Rafting Resort.. Such awesome hospitality, we arrived late on a Friday evening and went to check in... The cabin we stayed in was warm, peaceful and clean. We could not ask for any better of service and hospitality. Although we went in winter we could not raft, kayak or try the paintball, we had an awesome relaxing weekend. WE definitely will be back in warmer weather to do some rafting.. and paintball. Spent quite a bit of time relaxing at the bar with Larry & Kathy... I can't even remember a place so friendly and pricing was unbelievable... If you love the outdoors and need some R & R then Thornton's is a must on your list of places to stay. read more

I paid an additional fee to reserve my cabin. Upon arrival, heard FROM OTHER GUESTS, not the owners, that I had been moved to another cabin. If they had notified me, at least I would've had the option to cancel (and I would've). read more

I had the time of my life at Thornton's this past weekend. A group of us spent the weekend here camping and rafting the Peshtigo River. Thornton's was our campsite and cabin site, our caterers, our watering hole and our rafting guides. I could not have been more pleased with their services and I found their pricing to be extremely reasonable. As a first time camper as an adult, I found their site very clean, well maintained and quiet. Well, quiet after 2am. The Saturday night DJ made turning it in early near impossible. His chose selections which appealed to everyone. The songs kept the crowding growing and going. Definitely a great time had by all and we agreed there is a return trip in our future. *** wifi is available near the bar area but we were all unable to use it because no one knew the code. It's frustrating but also helpful. It forced us all to pry ourselves away from technology temporarily. read more

Just had the best conditions, along with a excellent guide = AWESOME Rafting trip. Thorton's guide was great in communicating all necessary safety guidelines, along with being great entertainment during ride down the Peshtigo. Highly recommend Thortons for the Peshtigo rafting ride! read more

Thornton's Whitewater Rafting Resort - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Athelstane, Wisconsin

This is just a camping review, didn't do any other activities here. So came up from IL last summer with a group of 16 for a 1 night trip. First of all, we got lost trying to find this place. I wasn't driving so I can't say if it's easy or hard to find, but took us a good 20 minutes to figure out where we were going. So be aware if you go here that you might not have the best cell phone signal and GPS might not always work. But anyway, walked in to a bar to check in. Not ideal but i mean, i don't know why the other reviewer had such a problem with it. They gave us 2 campsites that were next to each other so it's as if we had 1 big one which was awesome. And it was like secluded from the rest of the sites which was nice. So if we had to share that site with another group, that probably would have sucked but it worked out. Ordered 2 bundles of wood and they give you a good amount of fire wood. Walking distance from the reservoir so if you wanted to go swimming you can go there. It was cold though, maybe it's hotter towards the mid summer though. Thought I read somewhere that it had a volleyball court but i couldn't find one so not sure if that is true. And yeah So as for our site, it was clean and quiet, but some other campsites were right on top of one another pretty much and I'm sure that would have been annoying, so it's kind of just luck of the draw. At night the bar in the front gets pretty lively with a DJ so that was pretty fun. Give you something to do if you get bored of just sitting around a campfire. Place is fine read more

Thorntons is top-notch. They blow Kosirs out of the water (no pun intended). After 3 years of sub-par service from both the campsite and the rafting guides, smaller campsites, over-crowded rafts on the Menominee river, and a "bohring" bar... we decided to switch to Kosir's rival company: Thorntons. Best switch. Our first year there, we already like it more because our campsite was humungous and pretty clean. They're private, yet easily accessible. No shortage of trash bins, porta potties, and water faucets. Bathrooms were clean. The best part of the experience was in the rafting. We did the two-river special: camp 2 nights, raft the Peshtigo and Menominee rivers. The Peshtigo was at around +3/+2 levels; we had 3 guides for 42 people. Yes, it was crowded, but I never felt that there wasn't a guide close enough to notice me fall off. I felt that their coverage was very good. Rob was the lead, he is great at emphasizing: "Do not stand in fast moving water" x3; safety first in his mind which we all appreciate. They stopped us every time we were to expect rapids/ falls, which was nice so it wasn't all a surprise (it did eat up time though)- but helped keep the 42 person group together. The Menominee was even more fun; Rob was once again our guide. Expect to hear the "Do not stand in fast moving water" x3 again. He's got his own style going down the rapids, he had us "brace" down the major rapids and we did, it was an awesome ride. No one fell off, everyone had fun. Best ride we've had so far down the Menominee. To the person who rated Thortons low because of the Menominee, guess what, they can't control what the river is like... if you're going to rate the company, rate them for something they can control... Overall, we liked their service. Kathy is easy to work with in terms of reservations and logistics. Their bar is fun too, just wished I didn't have to dodge darts when I walk out of the bathroom... Phenomenal guide, phenomenal personnel (including the bus drivers), we are 100% recommending this place to anyone looking for whitewater rafting in the Midwest. See you next year Thorntons read more

I thought I'd be a little more constructive with my review. The Welcome: if your bartender (who was genuinely a nice guy) is going to be the first contact upon arrival, a better script would go a long way. In other words, provide us with information about your property, things to do, places to eat. Get local businesses to include their info in a Welcome Packet. Not having this tells me your guests don't ask for this because they're already very familiar with the area (locals) or you'd rather not take the time and effort. The cabin: I didn't think it was very clean. A grill should be standard if someone is paying the money for a cabin. Not "one fell off someones truck last week and you can check the road towards the campsites to see if it's still there." I get Thorton's is really not in the business of hospitality and that roughing it should be anticipated, but if you're going to provide dish soap (telling me you want us to do our own dishes) then give us a couple of hand towels and provide hand soap for the bathroom. At a minimum. The property: you have the lake a half mile away with snowmobile trails that go around it. Have a handful of bikes that you can rent out by the hour or by the day. I would have done this. If there really is so much to do close by, then strike up a deal with these businesses so guests get a deal for your referral. We did drive by the bumper boats and cars, by the way, on a Saturday evening at about 6:30. Ghost town. Not a soul there. Looked like the place had been closed for years. Regulate the limit of people staying at each site. I get there's nothing you can do about the four permanent cinderblock shacks and mobile home all within close proximity, but it would have made our trip more enjoyable not having 12 high school boys in a 2 bdrm cabin 50 ft away and a bachelor party directly behind us. I really got the impression this is encouraged, as people can party away at the bar on site and stumble the two minutes to where they're sleeping for the night. The rafting: I understand the game of marketing, but you're not going to get repeat guests if you're talking up these rafting trips. It's one rapid really, run twice. I wasn't a fan of trying to race multiple rafts or have water fights. Maybe this works for 10 year olds and their grandparents, but not for any thrill seekers. If I'm not the right target market, fine, then shame on me for expecting too much out of $50 and three hours of my day. If we're going to have to kill time, have your guides know how to break the ice. Maybe give us a little history lesson of the area. Educate them on the river so they can share with us. Okay, admittedly I've spent too much time on yelp for this, but it kills me when businesses don't live up to their potential. That is, unless they're okay with not getting business outside of the greater Athelstaneland area. read more

The campground was overrun by LOUD music from all directions, quiet time was after 2:30 am. The pit toilets were unusable. There was NO 30 or 50 AMP for campers, just 110. Also, the lake across the road with beach was 2 miles away!! No phone service or wifi. Maybe that's why they didn't answer the questions when I asked! read more

I've been coming here every year for 12 years. I love the service from the owners, the staff on the campsite, the guides for rafting and the guides for paint balling. I would strongly recommend this place to someone looking to have a fun experience in the north woods! read more

Randy was an awesome guide today!!! Great rapids on the Peshtigo River and a perfect way to cool off on a hot day! Kathy was wonderful during the set-up process and kept us informed of the river level so we could do the safest option with our 9 & 12 year old girls. Thanks an amazing experience!!!!! read more

Went up for a weekend vacation up in a cabin, three hours away from my actual house. I have went to other rafting places where the instructors seemed TOO serious about there job. Instructors here were absolutely amazing. They gave us very good information and knew the river a lot. They were also humorous too which was amazing because it was easier to have fun while being safe. A few people in funyaks fell over board but they did an amazing job at helping them to safety. In the end I was glad I went and glad I made it home without a scratch. ABSOLUTELY AMAZING EXPERIENCE!!! read more

My family and I rented a cabin there for a few days to go white water rafting and paintballing. The experience was unforgettable. The cabin was supposed to come furnished with clean dishes. We ended up having to spend an hour cleaning all the dishes when we arrived because they were filthy. During out first night, we discovered mice running around the kitchen (they seemed to be living or getting in near the stove). There were also an exceeding amount of insects inside the cabin. I know it's camping, but we dropped money on the cabin for a reason. I would've been much safer from pests inside my tent. The white water rafting is really overhyped. By the time it was over, we thought we still hadn't reached the big "10 foot vertical drop" that they constantly mention. Our guide, Randy, seemed like a good guy, but he definitely isn't getting paid enough for all the enthusiasm he musters up when going over those little rapids. He screamed the whole time, making the whole experience seem much more intense than it actually was. Much worse than the rafting was the paintball. They have teenagers running it who clearly have no idea what they are doing. When we first arrived, we had to wait for more players to come. A large group of Asian college students showed up. They were confused because they said they paid for a private game, but were told they had to play with my group of 4. Eventually they gave in and we all played together. Half the time spent at the paintball field was spent standing around. We would take a 5 minute walk out to a field, play two rounds, and then walk back. After standing around for 10 minutes, we would do the same thing over again. It felt like they were really trying to run out the clock. This was especially clear when they told us they were closing early! Even though we paid for a certain number of hours, they decide to close up an hour early that day before our scheduled end time! But the most outrageous part of this horrible experience was when the referee began making racist comments about the Asian group. That alone ensures that I will never be back to this so-called "resort." As if that wasn't enough, the bartenders at the bar on the campground were extremely rude. I go camping every year and this was by far my worst experience yet. They did not deliver fully on a single thing they promised. Stay away, unless you like NOT getting the things you've paid for. (Also, beware of the good reviews. One of the 5-star Google reviews, we later learned, was written by our rafting guide!) read more

Note to those reading - I'm reviewing the bar Thorton's which is next to the rafting / campground. We didn't go rafting or use the campground, only went to the bar, two nights in a row. On a tip from someone that this place is always poppin' with the campground literally right next to it, we decided to check it out. The place was packed upon arrival. There's a few picnic tables out front covered by a large overhang and lights, a popular area. You can bring your drink in or outside, which also made the outside area popular. There's a huge dirt parking lot that leads surrounds the bar only from the front. To our surprise, we noticed there was a DJ upon arrival. When you walk in theres a U shaped bar off to the left and a pool table and dance floor off to the right (with the dj in the corner and bathrooms up against the wall). It's basically one big open room, and it was strangely bright and lit up for a bar. Because of how well lit up it was in there along with the loud music and basically nowhere to hide out and scope out the place we were almost tempted to leave after one drink. But the longer we stayed there the more we realized, the more you drink, the more awesome this place is to be at. Definitely not a place to come for a laid back night. People were hammering back shots like there was some sort of competition going on. All people were drink were shots and Busch Light. You could tell that 95% of the people in the bar were staying at the campground / doing the rafting trip for the weekend. That was good and bad considering the majority of the bar was one big group that came together, hard to tell if everyone knew everyone or if there was some people there looking to meet new people. The bartenders were all hammering back shots with the rafting group as well. The place was nothing but rowdy. The DJ was playing rap music at the start of the night, then typical wedding songs, then country, then awful classic rock, then rap. Kind of a weird mix of music, but he played any request you made which was cool. The music video of the song being played broadcast on the TVs. The dance floor surprisingly stayed consistent with anywhere from 3-10 people on it throughout the night. The outdoor area was at all times, equally as packed as the bar. As the night went on, and the drinks got smoother I was happy to be at probably the rowdiest bar in Crivitz. Beware though, this is a place to come get wild and get tipsy, not the place to sit and have a few. Thorton's could quite possibly be my new favorite spot to go to up north - but you better be in the right mood for it. read more

Kathy and her team do not know how to run a business or treat customers. Their bookkeeping system is a notepad and pencil with random chicken scratches everywhere. They do not communicate with one another about anything. They also charge different amounts for the same activities and do not give receipts. We had nothing but problems from day one. They completely messed up our paintballing, camping, and rafting reservations. We called a month in advance with our definite numbers and made our reservations. They claim we did not because there was no note of it in their professional notepad. Kathy stated that it was the "most fucked up rafting trip ever scheduled," For all of the troubles, Kathy offered a bar tab on our last night. We went up to the bar later that night to see if the bar tab was still available. Kathy was outside smoking a cigarette. One person and I went up and said, "Hi, excuse me, we were just wondering if we still had a bar tab for tonight." Kathy does not look us in the eyes or say a word. She continues smoking her cigarette, tilts her chin up, and shakes her head at us with a scowling look on her face. We said "Okay, thank you." and walked away. Our last night there, Jolene also had the audacity to accuse our group of underpaying. That we only paid for 9 people total for rafting and 10 people went. She was rude and accusatory towards our group when their inconsistency and lack of communication made everything disorganized. It was impossible for us to cheat them out of their money since we could not even be scheduled for anything until we paid. Their rude, accusatory tone, foul language, disorganization, and lack of communication were by far the worst I have ever dealt with in customer service and on any camping trip. We have been doing this annual camping trip for 6 years. We understand it was a big group (16 people) checking in at different times with different activities being paid for by each. HOWEVER, the way they conducted themselves was inexcusable, and the campground we normally go to, Kosir's, as never had any issues. When we're spending over $1,000 at your establishment, pre-booked everything in advanced as we were directed to, and communicated with you through out the process to try to make it as easy as possible, we definitely deserve better treatment than we received. Do yourself a favor, drive 5 minutes up the road and go to Kosir's instead. The only positive I have about this place was the fun, energetic rafting and paintballing guides. They were awesome. Kathy and Jolene, on the other hand, were horrible. read more

Campground experience left much to be desired. Definitely NOT a family-friendly place. The bar is too close to the camp sites and above the bathrooms .. Loud music never seems to end. Reckless behavior from the staff delivering firewood made us nervous for the safety of campers, especially for children playing. Alcohol intake of campers is not regulated which makes for very unpleasant nights. Didn't try the rafting because of the lack of trust we had in this establishment's staff choice. That being said, honestly, if you DO want to party all night and be close to a fun bar, then this is the place for you. The bathrooms are clean which is a huge plus at a campsite. Can't comment on the rafting or paint-balling since we didn't try them. read more

I can't think of anything negative about this trip. Let me start with the customer service. Booking this trip was a breeze. I called to reserve one month in advance. I guess that was too early because the girl I first talked to said she wasn't sure if there will be enough people on the trip since we only had a party of 2. She then suggested waiting to pay until the owner calls me back for more info. Kathy, the owner, called me an hour or so later and said that it would be okay and that, if there were not enough people who reserved for the day we were planning to go (which was a Thursday), there should be guides there to go with us. So, we went ahead and booked the trip and paid for it. Now, a few days later, I noticed two charges on my bank acct for one trip. I called Thorntons again and explained. Kathy called me back an hour later. I explained that I think I might have been double charged. She took care of it right away. No hassle. No problem. My bf and I went on the afternoon Menominee river trip. The first few minutes of the trip were in standing water. Tyler, our guide, tried to keep the 6-8 of us from getting bored by telling stories about his trips and what to expect. When we finally got to the exciting part of the river, it was awesome! We were sitting in the front all times that we ran the gorge. We got the brunt of the splash everytime we go. We went through the gorge four times (we got someone special on the trip so we benefited from the extra runs. Yay!). Everyone was wonderful and Tyler made sure there were no casualties on every run. This was the star of our long trip to northern Wisconsin -- and it was def worth the 5-hour drive. read more

Thornton's Whitewater Rafting Resort - Going down Piers Gorge -- HUGE splash - Rafting/Kayaking Near Me - Athelstane, Wisconsin

I chose Thornton's to take my kids on a whitewater rafting adventure earlier this week based on my own searches for reviews. Now that I have first-hand experience, I can add my own endorsement to the mix. We had a fantastic time with this mini-vacation getaway and it was worth the 5 hour drive from Chicago. I booked my accommodations about 6-8 weeks in advance with Kathy, who was very helpful and flexible. She asked only that I let her know one week in advance if the fourth member of our party could make it or not so she could adjust the raft count; it turned out my wife could not make the trip, and Kathy adjusted the charges accordingly the week before our trip. We stayed in a 2-bedroom cabin during our visit. The cabin was clean and acceptable for a 2-night stay. My daughter and I each took a bedroom and my son slept on the futon in the living room/kitchen area. My daughter expects bathrooms to be like a 5-star hotel and was not thrilled with the stone wall look, but hey-- it was a fully functional bathroom with plenty of hot water and as the only real 'camper' among the three of us, I was grateful for the amenities. There was a DVD player and a few DVDs to go along with those we brought with us, so that provided some evening entertainment for our crew. On our full day, we went on the 2 PM run with our guide, Brian, who was personable and very qualified. Thornton's spends a lot of time going through the safety drills and mechanics of paddling during the beginning part of the run while the rafts float around in the still water near the departure point. This seems a bit excessive and lengthy, but as I think about it, this is probably for the best. It is important to know how to work together to steer the raft and to avoid falling in and getting injured. My 17 year-old son has a learning disability and I was concerned about whether or not he could follow the instructions on paddling and avoid problems on a Class 3-4 run. The time spent getting our crew acclimated definitely helped and I think Brian kept a watchful eye on both my son and another 10-year old boy in our raft. We went through the series of rapids twice. A spare raft is attached to the primary so the crew can walk a trail back past the largest rapids to do a second run. Everyone offboards, walks past a high bluff where we can see what we survived, and then boards the secondary raft to do another run. You WILL be soaked, which is what you want in a whitewater adventure, right? At the end, you get a chance to swim for 10-15 minutes. The temperature of the water in mid-August is about 74 degrees, so the swimming is excellent even if the sky is a bit overcast. We were fortunate to have the sun break through just as we got underway and by the end of our run, the water was just fine. I would have liked to stay longer, but we had to head back the next day. My kids both indicated they had a great time. I highly recommend Thornton's for their professionalism, amicable disposition and for making what could be a potentially hazardous journey feel safe and exciting for families who want just a taste of whitewater, but without the terrifying near-death adrenaline rush experienced by Streep and Bacon in "The River Wild". I may even return next summer with my wife for a repeat. read more

Spent the weekend on their camp grounds and everyone in our group had a great time. Having the Cauldron Lake right across the road really was awesome. I definitely recommend and will come back. read more

I have been rafting for over ten years and have used many rafting outfitters. I have a rafting club called Urban WhiteWater Pirates. Our group uses many rafting, kayak and canoe outfitters all over WI. I have been going to Thorntons since 2001 and have been treated with utmost respect and so have everyone that I bring to Thorntons, I have been at Thorntons with family and friends.. The cabins are aways clean. Thorntons is open all year which is nice for multi-season activity's. The rafting is well worth your money if you want a safe well organized trip. They also have a paintball course and are close many fine restaurants. The staff at Thorntons are always friendly and knowledgeable. If you want a safe rafting experience, I would recommend Thornton's! read more

Thornton's is GREAT! Their guides are fun, friendly, and by all means: SAFE! I'm not the most adventurous person, so I was always worried about my safety. My worst fear is falling out of the raft, but the staff/guides gave proper instruction to ensure my safety. I'm a planner so I had set dates months in advance and I emailed Thornton's with lots of questions to make sure that my friends and I had the proper gear and that we had accurate directions to their outpost. I always received email responses in a timely manner, which I appreciated. If you want a great experience WhiteWater Rafting, I would definitely recommend Thornton's for you and your crew. They will accomodate to your needs and will always make sure your safety is first. I've been there twice now and I'm definitely not disappointed. Another cool thing is that they have a photographer taking photos of you and your raft while you go down the rapids! They are great photos and wonderful memories that you can always cherish. read more

I had a review on the site and it mysteriously disappeared which is quite frustrating. We love the area. There is plenty to do and plenty of nice people. If you miss the water you must be too busy texting because there are flowages and boat landings all over the area. There are sites in the back of the campground so big we have played kickball on them and the cabins are reasonable for the price and include a bathroom, refridgerator and stove. For the campers, the bathrooms on the campground are brand new and very clean. There is a bar which is not just a group of locals. We meet new people all the time when we go in there. We have been going there for 10 years and always go back! read more

Thorntons is America! I have been here twice and I can say that you don't have to try hard to have a good time here. The staff are very nice and we sensed nothing but positive vibes from everyone here. If you want yuppie luxury look elsewhere. If you want to feel like an American and absorb the scenic beauties of the back woods of Wisconsin while conquering some of the fastest rivers in the midwest...Well this is your one stop shop. I will be coming here again for sure. read more

A group of us went camping for a week and had a great time. Kathy the owner was very hospitable. This is the 2nd time our group of about 20 people some stayed just the weekend and some of us stayed a week. Everyone had a great time. We did rafting, kayaking, and fishing, but most of all enjoyed the nightly campfires that we dont get to do in the city of Chicago. We will definitely be back. read more

Our girl scouts tackled the group rafting & single Fun-Yaks on the Peshtigo & Menominee Rivers. Our rafting guides took great care of the girls- even sent out 2 guides to ensure their safety (thanks Zac & Leslie!). And Brian went above & beyond helping our girls on the Fun-Yaks. We were all first timers- so we truly appreciated the care they took with us. A special thanks to Kathy for helping us create lasting memories & taking great care of our resevations. Even the bus drivers were fun! The girls have been waiting a very long time for this adventerous trip- and Thornton's did not disappoint. read more

had absolutely a awesome time the campsite was great and the guides were very helpful and they took us down the funnest part of the rapids.